Nov. 30, 2001
BACKDROP: The Seawolves hope to bounce back this weekend after losing their last three games, including two at the St. Mary's Thanksgiving Classic in Moraga, Calif., last weekend.
ABOUT THE QUAKERS: Pennsylvania is 2-2 after falling to Temple, 66-60, on Wednesday. The Quakers' nerves have been tested in all four games, which have each been decided by six points or less. Penn was plagued by nine first-half turnovers, leading to a seven-point deficit at the break. The Quakers grabbed their first lead early in the second half and kept the game within a point until the final two minutes of play. Sophomore guards Mikaelyn Austin and Jewel Clark led Penn with 16 and 14 points, respectively, marking the first time this season Clark was not the high scorer for the Quakers.
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS: George Mason (2-2) also fell on Wednesday night, dropping a 64-59 defeat at the hands of Georgetown. The Patriots took a nine-point lead into the break and increased the cushion to 13 points, but the Hoyas went on an 18-9 run and converted their free throws down the stretch for the comeback victory. Sophomore forward Vernessa Neamo paced the Patriots with 16 points and nine rebounds. In GMU's previous game against UT-Chattanooga, freshman Laura Kooij, the Patriots' leading scorer, exploded for 41 points on 11-of-18 shooting, including 4-of-9 from behind the arc. She was also a perfect 15-of-15 from the free-throw line.
ABOUT THE LIONS: After losing their season opener, the Lions have reeled off four straight wins, including a victory over 25th-ranked Arizona State on the road. LMU defeated Cal Poly, 54-46, at home on Wednesday night. LMU led by as many as seven and fought off a Cal Poly rally in the second half to hang on for the win. Senior guard Bryn Britton leads the Lions in scoring with 15.8 a game.
THE SERIES: George Mason is the only team in this year's HIE Tournament that Stony Brook has not previously faced. The Seawolves faced Loyola Marymount in the Lions' Thanksgiving Tournament last year, with LMU capturing a 69-54 victory. Stony Brook dropped a road contest at UPenn, 68-56.
LAST TIME OUT: Allyson Keener's 18 points on 5-of-7 three-point shooting led James Madison to an 80-58 win over Stony Brook in the consolation game of the St. Mary's Classic Saturday night. The Seawolves came out strong, leading by as many as seven with a 19-17 edge at 12:28 left before halftime, but the Dukes responded with a 10-0 run to go up 22-19. Theresa LoParrino drilled a three-pointer to give Stony Brook a 25-23 lead with just over five minutes to go before the break, but that would be the last lead the Seawolves would enjoy. The Dukes went on another 10-0 run to close the half for a 33-25 lead and stretched the lead to as many as 27 points in the second half. The Seawolves could get no closer than 19 the rest of the game. Jill George led Stony Brook with her 10th career double-double of 13 points and 11 boards. Danyelle Ingram scored 12 points in just her second game, and LoParrino also chipped in with 12.
BOY, GEORGE: Senior Jill George was named to the St. Mary's All-Tournament Team last weekend. George had six points and eight rebounds against St. Mary's. She capped that off with a 13-point, 11-rebound performance against James Madison.
INJURY UPDATE: The early season certainly hasn't been kind to the Seawolves, who have suffered more than their share of injuries lately. Maggie Triggs remains out for six to eight weeks with a stress fracture in her foot, while Malica Jibowu is expected back from an ACL injury sometime in December. Danielle Moseley continues to recuperate from ACL surgery she had in August.
MEET THE METZ: Senior Jennifer Metz has enjoyed a lot of firsts in the Seawolves' first four games. After playing just 31 minutes last season, the senior walk-on has played in all four games, logging 74 minutes. She earned her first career start against JMU last weekend, scoring six points with four rebounds. She set career highs in both points (8) and rebounds (4) against LIU on Nov. 20. Not bad for someone who came into this season with nine career points in two seasons with Stony Brook.
SHOOTING WOES: After shooting 46 percent in the season opener against Rider, the Seawolves have suffered from the field. On the season, SBU is shooting just 38 percent. The Seawolves hit a season-low 26 percent against St. Mary's, making just 18-of-69 shots. Stony Brook isn't doing any better from beyond the arc, connecting on just 14-of-59 three-pointers (24 percent).
DOUBLE TROUBLE: Jill George is nearly averaging a double-double with 11.8 points and 9.8 rebounds. The captain has recorded two double-doubles this season for a total of 10 in her career.
INGRAM'S DEBUT: Coming off a shoulder injury, freshman Danyelle Ingram played for the first time last weekend and made an immediate impact, providing a spark off the bench for the Seawolves. Ingram had six points and two rebounds in just seven minutes of action against St. Mary's in her first game as a Seawolf. She was even better against JMU, scoring 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting and collecting three rebounds in 15 minutes. Ingram's 9.0 points per game leads the production off the SBU bench.
SEAWOLVES' STRUGGLE: The Seawolves' scoring was sporadic last weekend at St. Mary's. Against the Gaels, Stony Brook went without a basket for the first 7:36 minutes of the second half. SBU missed nine shots and two free throws during that span. In the JMU contest, SBU went scoreless for the final 5:15 of the first half and didn't net a basket until 15:53 remained in the game.
NO DISHES: After recording 13 assists against Rider and 18 against LIU, the Seawolves have collected just 12 in the last two games combined. Stony Brook had just three assists in the lowest output of the season (46 points) against St. Mary's. In the JMU contest, just nine passes led to Stony Brook baskets. Meanwhile, SBU turned the ball over 44 times against the two teams.
